Rapid prototyping through computational fluid dynamics (CFD)

The increasing competitive nature of today's marketplace is forcing manufacturing enterprises to become more efficient in every aspect of their business. Although the philosophy of concurrent engineering remains that of teamwork and the consideration of how decisions taken during early stages will effect latter stages in the design process, tools and technology have emerged which can enhance the process. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is a computer based mathematical modelling tool which can be used to simulate heat transfer and fluid flow within a physical system. CFD simulation is achieved by first breaking a CAD representation of the physical system into a 3D grid containing cells. The ability to simulate heat transfer and fluid flow within a system allows designers to investigate alternative designs without committing cost to hardware.